The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of apple tree botanically classified as Malus domestica Borkh. and known by the varietal name ‘UEB 38026’.
The new variety is the result of a cross in a planned breeding program between ‘Julia’ (female parent, unpatented) and ‘Ametyst’ (male parent, unpatented). The cross resulting in ‘UEB 38026’ occurred in the Spring of 1998 in the Czech Republic at 310 meters above sea level with a mean annual temperature of 7.7° C. and a mean annual precipitation of 680 mm. The purpose of the breeding program was to develop an early ripening, dessert apple variety with good eating qualities, attractive appearance, and with polygenic resistance against scab. The new variety was discovered in the summer of 2003 with the first flowers and fruiting on the original seedling in the Czech Republic. Subsequently, the new variety was asexually reproduced in the Czech Republic by budding/grafting on apple rootstocks in the spring of 2006.
The new variety is similar to both parents in early flowering and maturity for consumption time, and in the exhibition of resistance against scab. However, ‘UEB 38026’ differs from both parents as it has a globose-conical fruit shape, while ‘Julia’ and ‘Ametyst’ have a flat globose fruit shape. The fruits of the new variety are small to medium in size when compared to the medium-sized fruits of its parents. Fruits of the new variety have a yellow ground color and red overcolor, while the fruits of ‘Julia’ have a green ground color and the fruits of ‘Ametyst’ have a purple-red overcolor.
Further, when compared to apple tree named ‘UEB 1813’ (concurrently applied for under separate U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 15/330,708, the new variety exhibits small to medium-sized, globose-conical shaped fruits, while ‘UEB 1813’ exhibits medium-sized, globose shaped fruits. Additionally, the fruits of ‘UEB 38026’ have an earlier ripening time than the fruits of ‘UEB 1813’. However, both varieties have a ramified tree type with medium vigor.
The following characteristics also distinguish the new variety from other varieties known to the breeders:                Early ripening dessert, diploid variety;        Ramified tree type with medium vigor;        Spreading tree habit with many fruiting spurs;        Early bloom timing with a medium blooming period;        Fruit shape is globose-conical;        Fruit size is small to medium;        Fruit ground color is yellow with a medium amount of red overcolor having a pattern that is solidly flush with weakly defined stripes;        Fruit flesh color is predominantly yellow-orange;        Flesh is medium firm and very juicy, with a sweet aroma;        Fruit russet is absent; and        Resistance against scab on assumed polygenic basis.        
The new variety has been trial and field tested and has been found to retain its distinctive characteristics and remain true to type through successive asexual propagations.